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Articles sur Seeds

Affichage de 21 à 40 de 43 articles

A mast year can be a squirrel’s dream come true. Editor77/Shutterstock.com

Tons of acorns? It must be a mast year

Masting is what biologists call the pattern of trees for miles around synchronizing to all produce lots of seeds − or very few. Why and how do they get on schedule?
Libraries are offering new and innovative things that belie their historic image as silent places to read.

7 unexpected things that libraries offer besides books

With advancements in technology, libraries are offering much more than something to read. A library researcher offers a sampling of some unexpected items that library patrons can check out these days.
Soybean seeds treated with neonicotinoids (blue) and treated corn seeds (red) versus untreated seeds. Ian Grettenberger/PennState University

Why it’s time to curb widespread use of neonicotinoid pesticides

US farmers are planting more and more acres with seeds coated with neonicotinoid pesticides. An ecologist explains why this approach is overkill and may be doing more harm than good.
More than 70% of Rwanda’s population are subsistence farmers. Shutterstock/Sarine Arslanian

Rwanda’s agricultural revolution is not the success it claims to be

Findings from several scientific studies show the real impact of Rwanda’s agricultural policies and the challenges it faces.
Once the coat around the seed is moistened, the embryo cells expand and burst out in a process called germination. shutterstock/NUM LPPHOTO

Curious Kids: how can a tiny seed actually grow into a huge tree?

A seed contains nearly everything a tree needs to get growing. Just add a dash of water, a bit of warmth and the right location, and you’ll be seeing green in no time.
Ntombithini Ndwandwe, an agroecology farmer displaying her diversity of traditional seeds in Zimele, KwaZulu-Natal. Rachel Wynberg

Seeds under siege: it’s time to support traditional systems

Since 2000, the growth of the commercial seed market has almost tripled. More than 63% of the world’s commercial seed is now owned by six corporations.
The informal seed sector in Africa is massive – 90% of farmers get their seeds from there. Shawn McGuire

Africa’s informal seed system needs to be brought in from the cold

More than 90% of Africa’ small-scale famers get their seeds from informal systems. Governments and donors should shift their attention from the formal and invest more in the informal sector.

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